Saturday, June 30, 2018

Book Review: A Rebel Heart by Beth White

About the Book

Five years after the final shot was fired in the War Between the States, Selah Daughtry can barely manage to keep herself, her two younger sisters, and their spinster cousin fed and clothed. With their family's Mississippi plantation swamped by debt and the Big House falling down around them, the only option seems to be giving up their ancestral land.

Pinkerton agent and former Union cavalryman Levi Riggins is investigating a series of robberies and sabotage linked to the impoverished Daughtry plantation. Posing as a hotel management agent for the railroad, he tells Selah he'll help her save her home, but only if it is converted into a hotel. With Selah otherwise engaged with renovations, Levi moves onto the property to "supervise" while he actually attends to his real assignment right under her nose.

Selah isn't sure she entirely trusts the handsome Yankee, but she'd do almost anything to save her home. What she never expected to encounter was his assault on her heart

About the Author

Beth White is the award-winning author of The Pelican Bride. A native Mississippian, she teaches music at an inner-city high school in historic Mobile, Alabama. Her novels have won the American Christian Fiction Writers’ Carol Award, the RT Book Club Reviewers’ Choice Award, and the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award. Learn more at www.bethwhite.net.

My Thoughts

I love books that are set in the Civil War Time Period. I loved how this book started off during the war and then moved a few years later post war. I love the authors writing style the story that she has created flows easily on the pages. Levi and Selah are great characters. They are well written. There are a few twists and turns thrown into the story too.

I received a copy of this book through the Revell Reads blogging program, all thoughts are my own.

Thursday, June 21, 2018

Book Review: To Claim her Heart By: Jodie Wolfe on Tour with Celebrate Lit.

About the Book

Title: To Claim Her Heart

Author: Jodie Wolfe

Release Date: May 14, 2018

Genre: Historical Romance

In 1893, on the eve of the great race for land, Benjamin David prays for God to guide him to his ‘Promised Land’. Finding property and preaching to the lost are his only ways of honoring his deceased fiancee, but he didn’t count on Elmer (Elsie) Smith claiming the same plot and refusing to leave. Not only is she a burr in his side, but she is full of the homesteading know-how he sadly lacks.

Obtaining a claim in the Cherokee Strip Land Run is Elsie Smith’s only hope for survival, but not just any plot will do. She has a specific one in mind. The plot’s not only a way to honor her pa and his life, but also to provide a livelihood for herself. Elsie’s willing to do whatever it takes to get that piece of property, and she determined to keep it, but she wasn’t planning on a kind, handsome preacher standing in her way.

Her bitterness is what protects her, and she has not intentions of allowing that preacher to lay claim to her land … or her heart.

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Jodie Wolfe got bitten by the writing bug as a young girl after reading and watching Little House on the Prairie. She creates novels where hope and quirky meet. The power of story to influence lives and change hearts is what motivates her to weave tales that tell of the Savior’s faithfulness and forgiveness. When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her husband in Pennsylvania, reading, walking, and being a Grammie. Learn more at www.jodiewolfe.com.

Guest Post from Jodie Wolfe

The Heart of a Book

I think there’s always a little bit of the author in each book they write, but sometimes something deeper and very close to the author is wrapped up in the pages of a story. That’s the case for To Claim Her Heart. This is the tale that my mother-in-law always wanted me to write. She was so proud of her family heritage and almost twenty years ago, she was anxious to share it with me. We visited Oklahoma where several of her relatives had staked claims in the last great race for land in our country – the Cherokee Strip Land Run of 1893. This September will mark the 125th anniversary of the land race.

While it saddens me that my dear mother-in-law never lived long enough to see this story in print, I’m thankful that she shared her rich heritage with me. In To Claim Her Heart I was able to mention a recipe passed down through her family for prune cake. I also made sure the heroine had a Rose of Sharon quilt that was given to her. My mother-in-law gave me this quilt dating back as early as 1834 when it was stitched by my husband’s great, great, great, great grandmother. It’s been passed down to the oldest daughter for generations. But, I think one of my favorite memories is the one that concerns outlaws and how my husband’s great, great, great grandmother dealt with them. To find out more about this actual encounter, you’ll have to read To Claim Her Heart. I hope your heart will be as touched by these stories as mine was when my mother-in-law shared them.

Enjoy!

My Thoughts

First and foremost I love this author. I have read several of her books and have always loved them. I also love books about Oklahoma. For some reason they make me so happy. The one thing that I can always count on with Ms. Wolfe is that you will read a unique storyline, with well developed characters that will keep your attention. This is a beautifully written story that will warm your heart.

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program all thoughts are my own.

Blog Stops

Carpe Diem, June 19

Texas Book-aholic, June 19

Blossoms and Blessings, June 20

Remembrancy, June 20

Novels corner, June 21

Luv’N Lambert Life, June 21

Ashley’s Bookshelf, June 22

Connie’s History Classroom, June 22

Among the Reads, June 23

Margaret Kazmierczak, June 23 (Interview)

History, Mystery & Faith, June 24

Reading is my Super Power, June 24 (Interview)

Vicky Sluiter, June 25

Two Points of Interest, June 26

proud to be an autism mom, June 26

Splashes of Joy, June 27

Bibliophile Reviews, June 27

A Baker’s Perspective, June 28

Pause for Tales, June 29

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 29

Christian Author, J.E.Grace, June 30

Red Headed Book Lady, June 30

Janices book reviews, July 1

Jeanette’s Thoughts, July 1

Bigreadersite, July 2

Godly Book Reviews, July 2

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Jodie is giving away a grand prize of a Kindle Fire!!

Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cf88/to-claim-her-heart-celebration-tour

Monday, June 18, 2018

Book Review: This Wilderness Journey By Misty M. Beller -- On Tour with Celebrate Lit

About the Book

Title: The Wilderness Journey

Author: Misty M. Beller

Release Date: April 24, 2018

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

He’s been sent to retrieve the new missionary… But she’s not at all who he expects to find.

Joseph Malcom has spent his life protecting those in need, but now that his sister is safely settled with her new family in the Canadian Rockies, his help is no longer required. That is, until he’s asked to safely retrieve the priest’s cousin to help minister to the local Indian tribe. But his passenger is not at all who he expects.

After the death of her mother, Monti Bergeron has nothing to keep her in Montreal. While the prospect of ministering to the Indians out West is daunting, she looks forward to assisting her beloved cousin in his mission work. The life of a nun may be just what she needs to heal her grief, serving her Heavenly Father and fellow mankind, especially if no more pesky suitors are around to ask for her hand in marriage. But the man who’s been sent to guide her through the mountains might make her second-guess her plans before she even begins.

As Monti settles into her ministry, Joseph finds his wandering feet drawn back to the Indian camp. Monti’s focus on God is more unsettling than he’d like to admit. Add to that her beauty which tests his willpower at every turn, and she’s made it crystal clear she doesn’t want a husband. But when his determination to keep distance between them puts Monti in danger, protecting her might require something Joseph might not be able to give.

Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Author

Misty M. Beller writes romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love.

She was raised on a farm in South Carolina, so her Southern roots run deep. Growing up, her family was close, and they continue to keep that priority today. Her husband and daughters now add another dimension to her life, keeping her both grounded and crazy.

God has placed a desire in Misty’s heart to combine her love for Christian fiction and the simpler ranch life, writing historical novels that display God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.

Guest Post from Misty Beller

The Frontier Cook

I love to write frontier romance, where the challenges were tough and the people had to be even tougher. And one of the things I love to imagine is how my characters cooked during those days.

Can you imagine how hard it would be to cook over an open fire? Every. Single. Meal. Of course, it’s not like they had a lot of variety to work with. Once you learned how to make a decent stew or corn mush, you didn’t have much to worry about, right?

Yet, many of the frontier women became quite adept at cooking over their cabin’s hearth, or even over an open campfire. In my new book, This Wilderness Journey, Monti (the heroine) came from a middle-class home with a paid chef and never had to learn to cook at all, much less without the use of a wood stove (which is still so much harder than heating a hot-pocket in the microwave). After she burned the corn mush their first night on the trail through the Canadian wilderness, Joseph (the hero) taught her a few basic meals.

As I was researching some creative ways frontier women cooked in an open hearth, I discovered the wide use of puddings, mostly because of how easy they were to make. By wrapping the ingredients in a cloth or pudding bag, they could be dropped in a pot of boiling water and left until the ingredients had softened and expanded. An entire meal could be made with a few ingredients, a pudding cloth, and a pot of boiling water.

One of my favorite cooking scenes in This Wilderness Journey is the making of the Oatmeal Pudding. What do you think? Sound like something you’d like to try?

My Thoughts

This is a well written book. The descriptions in this story are amazing. I always enjoy everything that I have read from this author. This is the 2nd book in the series, and can be read as a stand-alone. The storyline is intriguing, moves at a comfortable pace, has well written characters and is very enjoyable. I really enjoyed that the characters had flaws, baggage that they struggled with. I always love when characters are real. I look forward to more from this author.

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging program. All thoughts are my own.

Blog Stops

A Baker’s Perspective, June 7

Among the Reads, June 7

Two Points of Interest, June 8

The Power of Words, June 8

Blossoms and Blessings, June 9

The Christian Fiction Girl, June 9

Mary Hake, June 10

Splashes of Joy, June 10

Kathleen Denly, June 11

D’S QUILTS & BOOKS, June 11

Maureen’s Musings, June 12

Kat’s Corner Books, June 12

Mommynificent, June 13

Reading Is My SuperPower, June 13

Moments Dipped in Ink, June 13

Bibliophile Reviews, June 14

Luv’N Lambert Life, June 14

Pause for Tales, June 15

proud to be an autism mom, June 15

Texas Book-aholic, June 16

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 16

Janices book reviews, June 17

Jeanette’s Thoughts, June 17

Carpe Diem, June 18

Red Headed Book Lady, June 18

Connie’s History Classroom, June 19

Bigreadersite, June 20

Christian Author, J.E.Grace, June 20

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Misty is giving away a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/cd16/this-wilderness-journey-celebration-tour-giveaway

Saturday, June 16, 2018

Book Review and Giveaway: The Captured Bride by Michelle Griep On Tour with Celebrate Lit

About the Book

Title: The Captured Bride

Author: Michelle Griep

Release Date: June 1, 2018

Genre: Historical Romance

A war-torn countryside is no place for a lady—but Mercy Lytton is a lady like none other. Raised amongst the Mohawks, she straddles two cultures, yet each are united in one cause . . . to defeat the French. Born with a rare gift of unusually keen eyesight, she is chosen as a scout to accompany a team of men on a dangerous mission. Yet it is not her life that is threatened. It is her heart.

Condemned as a traitor, Elias Dubois faces the gallows. At the last minute, he’s offered his freedom if he consents to accompany a stolen shipment of French gold to a nearby fort—but he’s the one they stole it from in the first place. It turns out that the real thief is the beguiling woman, Mercy Lytton, for she steals his every waking thought.

Can love survive divided loyalties in a backcountry wilderness?

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Michelle Griep’s been writing since she first discovered blank wall space and Crayolas. She is the author of historical romances: The Innkeeper’s Daughter, 12 Days at Bleakly Manor, The Captive Heart, Brentwood’s Ward, A Heart Deceived, Undercurrent and Gallimore, but also leaped the historical fence into the realm of contemporary with the zany romantic mystery Out of the Frying Pan. If you’d like to keep up with her escapades, find her at www.michellegriep.com or stalk her on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

Guest Post from Michelle

A Visit to Fort Niagara

Whether you’re a history buff or don’t have a clue what the French and Indian War was about, there’s a destination in upstate New York that’s fun to visit for the whole family . . .

My husband and I made the trek to this living history site last summer. I had no idea what to expect, other than what was advertised as a “reenactment camp.” For those who don’t know, this is when volunteers who adore history come together to present a particular event, such as a battle. These people usually choose a real person from the era upon whom they fashion their modern day persona. They dress, speak, eat and live as that person might have. Here I am with some of my new friends:

Generally around the 4th of July, the 1759 Battle of Fort Niagara is recreated in a 3-day extravaganza of soldiers, muskets, canons and an entire market place to peruse selling period-related items.

Some of the things that surprised me about stepping back into the mid-eighteenth century were:

How much smoke muskets kick out
Once the battle begins, it’s hard to see who is your enemy or ally
Canons are really loud
Everything wasn’t as black and white as it seems in pictures—gowns and uniforms were very colorful

What makes this event so spectacular is that they take the entire 20 day siege and condense it into 3 days. If you visit every day, you’ll see and experience exactly what happened. You’ll be there to see the British, Colonial regulars and Iroquois allies sneak out of the tree line to shoot at some French soldiers who were pigeon hunting just outside the fort. You’ll hear the war whoops and barrage of angry French epithets roaring on the air. You’ll even get a chance to taste some of their food as you wander around inside the French Encampment set up inside the fort walls.

To experience a bit of the danger, sights and sounds of what Mercy and Elias lived through in The Captured Bride, Fort Niagara really is a fantastic place to visit.

My Thoughts

This book is part of the Daughter of the Mayflower series. The cover is absolutly beautiful. I have read the previous books in the series so I was excited to see this one come available. I have read this author before (you can check my review out Here). In this story, you are transported to a forgotten area of history. The French and Indian war (1790). The plot is very intriguing and took me on an adventure and I could not read fast enough. I always love getting a history lesson as I am reading. This book is well researched, beautifully crafted and a great story to read.

I received a book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program -- all thoughts are my own.

Blog Stops

Vicky Sluiter, June 9

Fiction Aficionado, June 9

Blossoms and Blessings, June 9

A Baker’s Perspective, June 9

History, Mystery & Faith, June 10

Inklings and notions, June 10

Just the Write Escape, June 10

Faithfully Bookish, June 11

The Power of Words, June 11

Genesis 5020, June 11

Bakerkella, June 11

My Writer’s Life, June 12

Christian Chick’s Thoughts, June 12

Luv’N Lambert Life, June 12

Among the Reads, June 13

Book by Book, June 13

D’S QUILTS & BOOKS, June 13

Moments Dipped in Ink, June 14

Splashes of Joy, June 14

Artistic Nobody, June 14 (Spotlight)

Bibliophile Reviews, June 14

Pause for Tales, June 15

All-of-a-kind Mom, June 15

Mary Hake, June 15

Bigreadersite, June 15

Connie’s History Classroom, June 16

Simple Harvest Reads, June 16 (Guest post from Mindy Houng)

Two Points of Interest, June 16

The Christian Fiction Girl, June 17

Daysong Reflections, June 17

Novels corner, June 17

Kathleen Denly, June 18

A Reader’s Brain, June 18

Remembrancy, June 18

proud to be an autism mom, June 19

Texas Book-aholic, June 19

Christian Author, J.E.Grace, June 19

Reading Is My SuperPower, June 20

Red Headed Book Lady, June 20

Margaret Kazmierczak, June 20

Mommynificent, June 20

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 21

Janices book reviews, June 21

Jeanette’s Thoughts, June 21

With a Joyful Noise, June 22

Pink Granny’s Journey, June 22

Carpe Diem, June 22

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Michelle is giving away a grand prize of

a signed copy of The Captured Bride and a $25 Barnes & Noble gift card!!

Click below to enter. https://promosimple.com/ps/d06e/the-captured-bride-celebration-tour-giveaway

Sunday, June 3, 2018

Book Review: Together Forever By Jody Hedlund --- on tour with Celebrate Lit

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About the Book

Title: Together Forever, Orphan Train Book 2

Author: Jody Hedlund

Genre: Inspirational historical romance

Release Date: May, 2018

Determined to find her lost younger sister, Marianne Neumann takes a job as a placing agent with the Children’s Aid Society in 1858 New York. She not only hopes to offer children a better life, but prays she’ll be able to discover whether Sophie ended up leaving the city on an orphan train so they can finally be reunited.

Andrew Brady, her fellow agent on her first placing-out trip, is a former schoolteacher who has an easy way with the children, firm but tender and friendly. Underneath his charm and handsome looks, though, seems to linger a grief that won’t go away–and a secret from his past that he keeps hidden.

As the two team up, placing orphans in the small railroad towns of Illinois, they find themselves growing ever closer . . . until a shocking tragedy threatens to upend all their work and change one of their lives forever.

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Jody Hedlund is the author of over a dozen novels, including Love Unexpected, Captured by Love, Unending Devotion, The Preacher’s Bride, and A Noble Groom, winner of the 2014 Carol Award for historical romance. She received a bachelor’s degree from Taylor University and a master’s from the University of Wisconsin, both in social work. She lives in Michigan with her husband and five children. She loves hearing from readers on Facebook and on her blog at www.jodyhedlund.com.

Guest Post from Jody Hedlund

30,000 Abandoned Children

By Jody Hedlund

Imagine a city where 30,000 abandoned and homeless children live on the streets.

Sounds like something from a futuristic dystopian novel, doesn’t it? Or something that might happen after a war or apocalypse or major disaster, right?

This exact thing actually happened in the 1850’s. And the city was New York City.

It’s hard to believe, but an estimated 30,000 homeless children roamed the dirty city streets and alleys of New York City.

30,000. Children. Let that sink in for a minute. That’s the size of a town.

Historians look back on that time and try to make sense what led to such horrific conditions for children. Of course, the influx of immigrants was at an all time high. Jobs and housing were scarce. Diseases were rampant. Hunger and poverty became a norm. (Orphan Train Depot)

As more and more people became aware of the enormous problem within the crowded slums, courageous heroes rose up and attempted to do their part to make a difference.

While we may not always agree with the methods that were used to save the thousands of homeless children, we can admire the men and women who could no longer sit idly by.

The Children’s Aid Society was started by Charles Loring Brace as one such attempt to help the hordes of homeless children. His “Emigration Plan” is better known today by the term “Orphan Trains.”

My latest series tackles various elements of the orphan train movement. Together Forever, releasing in May, highlights the placing agents, those devoted people who rode the trains with the orphans. The agents spent weeks and months on the road caring for the children, all the while trying to place them in loving homes.

(If you’d like to try out the series, start with my FREE novella, An Awakened Heart.)

Like the brave men and women who came before us, may we always strive to do our part to make a difference!

My Thoughts

Another great novel! This is book 2 in the Orphan Train series. This is a heartwarming story with well written characters, flowing story line, and great detail. Orphan Trains is not something that I have read a lot about, so that is what drew me to this book. I loved reading Marianne's story and the other Children's Aid workers. I can't wait to read book 3.

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit blogging program, all thoughts are my own,